Unemployment and Inflation

• Cyclical unemployment: 2008 recession in USA. Reports from US labor department have shown economy lost 500,000 jobs in December 2008 and total of 1.9 million job sin last 4 months of 2008
• Cost push: !973-1974, OPEC restricted supply and of oil since it controls majority of oil reserves, causing prices to skyrocket 400%
• Demand Pull Inflation: 2018, Inflation rate in the Phillipines rose from 3.2% in January to 5.7 % in July due to high consumption and aggregate demand.
• Consequences of Inflation: 2018, high rates of inflation in Venezuela which experiences hyperinflation of 1 million % inflation rate by the end of the year. The economy contracted 18 percent due to the fall in purchasing power, fall in investment, business confidence, etc

Economic Growth and inequality

• Actual Growth: In 2017 the Chinese government implemented infrastructure project worth 323 billion USD across first 11 months.

Demand Side policies

• Expansionary (monetary): UK’s central bank lowered the interest rates from 0.5 to 0.25 percent in 2016 after Brexit to prevent risk of recession as fall in business confidence would reduce foreign investment.
• Expansionary (fiscal): In 2021 the Biden administration implemented a 1.9 trillion dollar in fiscal spending to stimulate the economy after the implications of covid 19 pandemic.
• Contractionary monetary: In 2021, Feds has implemented a 75 point basis hike in interest rates to try to curb inflation in USA and reduce the general price level
• Contractionary fiscal: In 1993, the Clinton administration raised the income tax from 31 - 39 % to keep inflation low at an average of 2.3%
• Income taxes: Contractionary, Singapore governemnt announced hike in the top marginal rate of income tax from 20 to 22. in 2018

Supply side policies:

• Privatization: 1995, sale of Singapore power to private enterprises in Singapore.
• Provision of training: Launched in 2016, WDA
• Research and Development: ASTAR launched in 1991 under the ministry of trade and industry, with the aim to increase level of science and technology in Singapore.